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As preparations for OceanObs'19 are in full swing, I find myself reflecting on the progress since OceanObs'99 in St. Raphael. The first OceanObs Conference was an interesting (and soggy) watershed event when, for the first time ever, the global ocean observing community developed community-wide ocean observing plans for the coming decade. Since then, the importance of the OceanObs activity has grown in size and scope - its impacts transcending well beyond the Conference itself. The decadal-era OceanObs plans and activities that arise from OceanObs conferences continue to strategically guide the future ocean observing system. The OceanObs'19 Community White-Papers offer a hint of what is to be addressed at OceanObs'19. The next decade of ocean observing will be unlike any of the past. We have the opportunity to more rapidly develop and utilize new technologies, improve integration across the enterprise, and engage communities who can contribute and utilize ocean-observing knowledge to address a growing set of requirements. I would not be surprised if the global ocean observing enterprise had to grow by an order of magnitude to meet these needs. The OceanObs'19 Conference will be just the first step of many towards crystallizing the opportunities and activities to address the demand for ocean information. We need to take full advantage of the opportunities presented throughout the week to map out the next steps over the coming year necessary to realize the global ocean observing we need in time for OceanObs'29.
NOAA will have a sizable presence at the OceanObs'19 Conference (check out the NOAA booth!). NOAA leadership will participate throughout the week. Our OOMD team will be well represented too.
I look forward to seeing many of you in Hawaii!
David Legler, Director - Ocean Observing and Monitoring Division
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Arctic Futures 2050 Conference
Sept 4-6 in Washington, DC
Sept 16-20, 2019 in Honolulu, HI
NOAA Research Forum
October 9-10, 2019 at PMEL in Seattle, WA
December 9-13, 2019 in San Francisco, CA
February 19-21, 2020 in San Diego, CA
*Abstract Submissions are open until Sept. 11!
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 Program Updates
In Silver Spring and beyond we have been working hard to prepare for a successful conference. Below is a list of our team's activities and accomplishments, and where you can find us at the conference!
The NOAA Booth: OOMD and IOOS will be managing the NOAA Booth, which will be open
8:00am to 6:00pm Sept 17-19. Lightning Talks will take place from 4:00-6:00pm each night and demos will take place in the early afternoon. Thank you to our Program Managers and PIs for signing up, the confirmed schedule will be out soon! Tuesday, Sept 17, from 5:15 to 6:00 NOAA leadership will be at the booth to engage with participants and to celebrate 10 years of ocean observing on the NOAA Ship Okeanos Explorer!
An Ocean of Data: NOAA's Role in Marine Extreme Events and Hazards.
This special session will take place Tuesday, September 17 from 11:30 - 12:30 and include a panel with leadership from OAR, NOS, NESDIS, NMFS, and NWS. Dr. Neil Jacobs will deliver opening remarks.
Breaking Waves, Breaking Barriers: Celebrating Women in Ocean Science Across the Generations. This event includes
discussion and a reception as we pay tribute to great women and inspire the future generations for a more inclusive, robust, and forward-leaning discipline. Wendy Schmidt will give opening remarks before the panel discussion begins. Several hundred people from 35 countries have registered to attend this event. Emily Smith is the lead organizer of this event.
David Legler is an invited panelist for two sessions: "
A sustainable fit-for-purpose ocean observing system"
(Sept 16, 11:30-12:30) and
"Climate Variability and Change"
(Sept 16, 2:00-4:00). David will also be part of the concluding OceanObs'19 Plenary "Sponsors" Panel on Friday, Sept 20, representing US federal interests.
Publications: The ocean observing community has been hard at work writing and reviewing community white papers aimed at addressing the key issues and future goals of ocean observations. Of the
140 papers currently published or under review for the special issue of Frontiers in Marine Science, OceanObs19: An Ocean of Opportunity, 63 of them have contributions from OOMD team members or affiliated PI authors, with 16 of them being lead authors.
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| Click the image to read the latest NOAA Research article on the state of the Bering Sea. |
Arctic Research Program PI, Jackie Grebmeier, delivered a public talk on the DBO and biological findings over time for a large local audience in Nome. The story was picked up by a local radio station that broadcasts at 50,000 watts and is heard throughout villages all over this part of Alaska. Read or listen to the story, titled
Years of Data Suggest Ecosystem Shifts in the Northern Bering Sea.
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Hurricane Gliders Launched in the Gulf Stream
Two hurricane gliders are making their way up the Gulf Stream to measure heat content to help forecast tropical storms and hurricanes. One glider was released on July 24th from Miami, FL and the other is expected to deploy in September. These deployments are part of a new project from PI Robert Todd at WHOI, funded by OOMD.
The Gulf Stream carries large quantities of warm water northward along the US East Coast. This reservoir of warm water can be an important source of energy to fuel hurricanes. Measuring the heat content in the Gulf Stream along the coast from Florida to North Carolina helps inform forecasts for a region in which tropical storms and hurricanes often form or intensify. Northeastward from from North Carolina, the Gulf Stream flows away from the coast and its northern edge is a boundary between the warm tropical waters that fuel hurricanes and the much cooler subtropical waters that can weaken passing hurricanes. Measuring the location and shape of this boundary is important for informing forecasts of when and where storms may begin to weaken and lose their tropical characteristics. Complementing satellite measurements that capture sea surface temperatures, the gliders provide key information on the subsurface heat content available to passing storms.
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Pensacola Tide Gauge Station Upgraded with New Sensors
The tide gauge station in Pensacola, Florida has successfully been upgraded to include Continuous Global Navigation Satellite Systems (cGNSS) sensors. This upgrade is part of a larger upgrade plan for all US based Global Sea Level Observing System (GLOSS) tide gauge stations. The new cGNSS sensors allow for tide gauges to detect vertical movements in the land where the gauges are located, which can help us understand total sea level change in a region. This information is valuable to the local community and planners, as well as the global community affected by sea level change. Researchers from around the world use the GLOSS tide gauge data to study the effects of regional and global sea level. NOAA and the US has committed to upgrading all 27 GLOSS stations in the country. This work was supported by the Ocean Observing and Monitoring Division. |
TPOS 2020 Updates
TPOS 2020 is preparing for a number of upcoming meetings to help prepare the project for its final year of "design phase" before it enters "implementation phase" in early 2021.
First, the TPOS Resources Forum (TRF) is having a lunch meeting at OceanObs'19 to discuss future governance needs and changes that need to be addressed. The TRF is composed of stakeholders from meteorological and oceanographic agencies with interest in the tropical Pacific Ocean.
Second, the TPOS Steering Committee is having their 6th meeting, hosted by the Second Institute of Oceanography in Hangzhou, China, in early November. There will be a one-day Western Pacific Technical Workshop, as well as a 3-day Steering Committee meeting.
Finally, there is a TPOS 2020 session at Ocean Sciences in San Diego, where presentations will highlight research and operational interests and needs of the region, as well as describe value to stakeholders.
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14th Annual BMKG NOAA Partnership Workshop Celebrated 70 Years of Diplomatic Relations between US and Indonesia
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Pictured: US Ambassador to Indonesia, Joseph Donovan, BMKG Director-General Prof. Dwikorita Karnawati, OOMD's Sid Thurston, and several US/NOAA colleagues, and the broader BMKG participants.
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The 14th Annual BMKG NOAA Partnership Workshop (right click to translate site) took place August 12 - 15, 2019 in Bogor, Indonesia. U.S. Ambassador Joseph Donovan delivered opening remarks to celebrate 70 years of diplomatic relations between Indonesia and the United States. OOMD's Sidney Thurston represented NOAA at the workshop in his role Co-Chair.
NWS's Climate Prediction Center (CPC) and Climate Services Program, as well as OAR's Pacific Marine Environmental Laboratory (PMEL) will also participate.
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orkshop themes included:
Improving Seasonal Climate Impact Based Forecasts Over Maritime Continent;
Improving Seasonal Climate Prediction for National Prosperity;
Improving Seasonal Climate Prediction for National Livelihood Sustainability.
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NSF Grant Awarded for 2nd Annual Women in Sciences Leadership Workshop
OOMD Program Manager, Emily Smith successfully wrote and received an NSF grant for the upcoming Women in the Sciences Leadership Workshop. This grant will fund local accommodations for 100 women to attend the workshop, and also fund up to 10 women to travel to Boulder that would otherwise be unable to attend. The workshop received 193 applications for 100 spots this year; last year 100 women applied and 53 were accepted. Emily Smith is a co-founder of this workshop, which was created to fill a gap in professional leadership and management training for women in the sciences across institutions.
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Call For JCOMM OCG Leadership Development Position
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Call for New GOOS Steering Committee Members
GOOS is looking for six new and enthusiastic members to join its Steering Committee. with
expertise in the areas of: communications and advocacy,
expertise and influence in raising resources across a number of funding channels
, capacity development,
delivery of products and services, partnerships, evaluating impact, organisational risk and governance, driving innovation
, and the needs of countries at the early stages of developing observing infrastructure.
Additional background can be found in the document
Designing the GOOS Steering Committee we need to deliver the Global Ocean Observing System 2030 Strategy
presented to the Eighth GOOS Steering Committee Meeting, April 2019.
Membership of the GOOS Steering Committee is for a 2-year renewable term. Steering Committee members are expected to take active ownership of some element of the strategy implementation, coherent with their expertise and interest, and have the support of their institution for their role. Apply by sending an email expressing interest and ideas on where you feel you could contribute to: goos@unesco.org, with your CV. Deadline is 30 September 2019. Selection will be made by 31 October 2019. Please forward to any contacts that you think would be good candidates
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Call For Senior Management Meeting Spotlight Presentations
Are you looking for a way to build excitement and support for your research? Consider signing up to deliver a Spotlight Presentation at an upcoming Senior Management Meeting! Every Monday, our leadership in Silver Spring attend the NOAA Research Senior Management Meeting. During each meeting there is an opportunity for scientists and program managers to showcase their research with a 15 minute, high level presentation, which can be delivered virtually from the field. The NOAA Research Communications team offers help with a guided practice session the week before. If you are interested in signing up, please contact your program manager and/or our Communications Specialist,
Jessica Mkitarian.
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ICYMI: Team Updates from Silver Spring
In Case You Missed It: OOMD and IOOS intern Kristyn Zoe (Kz) Wilkerson presented her research at NOAA's Science and Education Symposium on July 30th. We were all impressed with her presentation,
Flooding the Margins: Investigating Intersecting Urban Development and Coastal Consequences for Marginalized Communities. Kz is a
2019 Educational Partnership Program with Minority Serving Institutions Undergraduate Scholar studying at Spelman College in Atlanta, GA. We wish her the best of luck in her junior year!
OOMD Program Manager, Shelby Brunner was nominated and received a UCAR Special Recognition Award for her leadership in coordinating the TPOS 2020 Second Report drafting and publication.
The Second Report was an international collaboration with more than 40 authors and 400+ public comments. Shelby serves as the Project Coordinator for TPOS 2020 in OOMD.
From Boulder:
OOMD Program Manager, Kathy Tedesco helped
UCAR Give Back
by organizing a volunteer event at the Community Food Share of Boulder and Broomfield Counties. This event was organized as a team building exercise and as a desire to give back to the community. Kathy is a member of the
2019 UCAR Leadership Academy Cohort,
COBO (Cohort of Bike Owners).
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Recent Publications
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As always, for the OOMD Community, by the OOMD Community.
Do you have news to share with the OOMD Community, or beyond?
Contact Jessica Mkitarian: jessica.mkitarian@noaa.gov or
(301) 427-2472.
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